Research Design

The purpose of the final project is to build your own research design. It is not necessary to actually collect the data but the stage up to a detailed description of research methodology is required. The researcher’s ideas, relevant literature review, research questions and detailed methodology are the main contents of the paper. Word limit: 3,000-3,500 words excluding references, notes, appendices etc. Written format of the proposal should include; @ Student information @ Title of project @ Abstract (200 words) @ Keywords @ Introduction [or Problem Statement] @ Literature review (from the previous assessment) @ Research questions and methodology @ Timeline @ Budget @ References @ Ethics application form @ Summary of online peer review as appendix Students will work on their Ethics application form during the semester with the guidance provided by the unit convenor and will be included in the submitted final report. The Ethics application form will make 10% of the total mark leaving 40% for the final report excluding the Ethics application form. Based on your research proposal, a full HREC application using University of Canberra Ethics Application Form is to be submitted according to the guidelines. Researchers who intend to conduct research with human participants must apply to the Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) for approval before commencing their projects. Information about how to apply for HREC will be provided in the lectures and on Canvas. Refer to the Human Research Ethics Manual for details. After getting feedback from the unit convenor, students may wish to apply for ethics approval before taking the subsequent unit Communication and Information Project (9107), since that is when students will conduct the proposed research projects. For those who have chosen a methodology that does not require ethics approval, a generic research proposal will be given and students will write a ‘mock’ ethics application based on the proposal. Final report • Evidence of understanding of research methodologies, methods and techniques, as discussed in textbook readings, lectures and exercises. • Your ability to design a research following the steps outlined in the unit. • Application of concepts used in lectures, readings and exercise questions. • Overall quality of the proposal. • Compliance to the ethics application guidelines; • Your understanding of the relationship between researchers and research participants/objects; • Knowledge of the procedure of data collection in human research; • Ethical considerations specific to research methods or fields; • Your understanding of risks, benefits, consent involved in research. Feedback from professor9111 Social Research 2018 Literature Review Criteria Mark Additional comments Being able to find and identify relevant literature in the selected field of study 20% 2 The topic is overly broad and thus finding relevant literature is not easy. I suggest the student narrow down the topic somewhat so that the project will be manageable. The current literature review only outlines the current state of poverty in India and is very descriptive. There are many aspects of poverty that are discussed in the paper – aid, children, region, etc. Once the scope is narrowed, then the student needs to find relevant literature in just that area. The research questions that are listed after the literature review are not related to the research topic. Ability to summarise and link concepts and methodology of existing studies to your own research topic 20% 2 The research topic and questions are not clear. Therefore it is hard to link the literature to the research project. I suggest the student pick one topic – for example ‘what are the main elements and strategies adopted in policies aimed at an equal distribution in wealth after 2000’ (this is just an example but you need to clarify what it is you want to examine). Evidence of understanding of quantitative and/or qualitative research methodologies, methods and techniques, as discussed in textbook readings, lectures and tutorials 20% 2 Because of the disjunction between research questions and literature, the student wasn’t able to develop a research method. If it is going to be policy study, then document analysis or discourse analysis would be appropriate, in which case the student needs to review the relevant literature. Your ability to interpret research findings (Critical stance) 20% 4 A good summary of literature that are in the reviewed in the paper is provided. Making a coherent argument that is drawn from existing studies that is relevant to the proposed research question(s) 20% 2 The research questions and literature do not align well. Total 12 Research project proposed is basically a literature review. RQ1 is ok. RQ2 difficult to address as a research problem. RQ3 is a separate research project. Timeline is not detailed. If a comprehensive lit review is being conducted then perhaps a pilot lit review should be carried out to assess the scale of the field. Many researchers do this quantitatively buy examining every result of a keyword search and refining the material.